I have learned to deal with the cold weather, because if you don't, you'll just end up indoors all the time, and that is just depressing.
Winter Attire:
So, first things first, as my husband always says, "there is no such thing as bad weather, only bad clothing". For years, I hated this saying, but you know..it's really kind of true. From thermal leggings, to UGG boots, a min. of 2 pairs of socks, several layers of tops and a Didrikson wind and water resistant coat, it's a bit of a chore to get dressed every day, but it makes the (up to -18 C weather bareable).
Winter Solstice:
Baby it's dark out there! This winter solstice dealio is no joke. There are days when we only have about 5 or 6 hours of sunlight, so even though it's only around 3:30 in the afternoon, you feel like it's bedtime...this does not make for very productive days unfortunately. The darkest day was Dec. 21/22, but luckily now we've hit our darkest hour, so to say, and every day, we are gaining more and more light.
The winter solstice occurs exactly when the Earth's axial tilt is farthest away from the sun at its maximum of 23° 26'. More evident to those in high latitudes, this occurs on the shortest day and longest night of the year, when the sun's daily maximum position in the sky is the lowest.[1] Since the winter solstice lasts only a moment in time, other terms are often used for the day on which it occurs, such as midwinter, the longest night or the first day of winter. The seasonal significance of the winter solstice is in the reversal of the gradual lengthening of nights and shortening of days. Depending on the shift of the calendar, the winter solstice occurs on December 21 or 22 each year in the Northern Hemisphere - Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Winter_solstice
Early Snow:
We had our first bit of snow fall in late October. The next, first real snow hit on November 9th, 2011, which just so happens to be my youngest daughters birthday. Then, from mid-November until today, we have had snow on the ground. Coming from St. Louis, MO- I have definitely seen my fair share of snow, but nothing as constant as I have seen while living in Gothenburg, Sweden. The funny thing is, despite the bad weather, and low temps causing icing on the roads, I have discovered that Sweden just keeps on going. No "snow days" like back at home. A close source told me that the only day they ever remember being off for a "snow day" was on November 17th, 1994 - where about a foot and a half of snow dumped over the city of Gothenburg.
Winter hit new record in December. The month was the coldest in more than 100 years in the Gotaland and locally also in southern Svealand. Some of the towns that had the coldest December since records began in the 1800s was Karlshamn, Gothenburg, Lund and Linkoping. Source: http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=83&artikel=4273502A Winter Wonderland:
I will be the first to admit, winter is not my thing. I do not like being cold, and I would rather be on a beach in sunny Cali or chillin' at Bondi Beach in Australia. However, life has brought me to one of the coldest places in the world, and for what it's worth, Sweden is a beautiful country and with the glow of the snow on their gazillion trees, it's quite amazing really. Seeing the street of Avenyn lit up with beautiful lights, and just the perfect white powder lining the trees and homes really makes you think you are in a real life winter wonderland.
